Black-capped PetrelPterodroma hasitata

Diet and Foraging

Diet

Most anecdotal evidence supports that much feeding and activity is nocturnal and crepuscular, often at localized upwelling, where the mixing of surface and deep oceanic waters produces nutrient-rich areas. Simons et al. (2006) summarized an examination of 57 stomachs and crops of Black-capped Petrels collected off North Carolina that revealed the following: squid beaks (in 86% of the samples), squid eyes (26%), fish (39%; including Gonatidae), fish otoliths (7%), pelagic shrimp (20%), chiroteutuidae (10 mm; 2%), pieces of Sargassum (16%), unidentified items (21%), feathers (5%; from preening), parasitic nematodes (2%), and empty 4%. The time of collection and degree of digestion indicate that most individuals feed at night or early in the morning, although birds were seen feeding during mid-day.